In the small courtyard of the mud house where Dai Wang lived, Colonel Tian and Brigade Commander Zhang sat around in front of him and reminded him patiently again: "Dai Liulang, you have to think carefully, I can find you a job as a treasury clerk."
, it was the back door that Deputy Zhao specially sought out from General Li. One thousand two hundred dollars a month, two bushels of wheat and one bushel of barley, the same as your salary as a captain. You are not very busy every day, you just keep an eye on it.
Just don't let the mice steal the rice in the warehouse. If you can drink two taels of wine in your spare time, even if you want to marry a woman to live, depending on your income as a subordinate official in the warehouse, let alone the Hu women nearby, even if you are
Women from the Han family are also rushing to come to our door."
Dai Liulang rubbed his knees with his hands and said with a smile: "I know you are thinking about me, but don't we Han people always say that fallen leaves return to their roots? No matter how comfortable and good life is outside, we will eventually return to our hometown. I just spend my days in Shule by myself.
Even though I feel comfortable, I am afraid that I will not be at peace in my heart. I always miss my brothers and sister-in-law at home, and I will be reunited with them when I go back."
Tian Xiaowei saw that Dai Wang had made up his mind and could no longer persuade him. He took the heavy robe from Yan Lao'an, handed it to Dai Wang and said, "Although you cannot be promoted to an honorary officer, you will behead two levels in this expedition."
, the reward you received was also a sum of money, which was exchanged for yaks, sheep and property, a total of forty guan. You have been recruiting troops for nine years, and your family may have lost their land long ago. I will help you buy some after you return to your hometown.
Good farmland.”
Dai Wang took it with both hands and said with great gratitude: "Thank you Captain Tian and Brigadier Zhang for your concern. This is enough. Even after I return home, I will never forget these brothers in the army."
"That's natural. We won't forget Lidai Liulang. If you take good care of him, we won't bother you."
He was about to stand up to see her off, but the captain held her shoulders down: "If you have trouble with your legs and feet, don't see me off. Go inside and have a good rest."
Shortly after Colonel Tian and Lieutenant Li left, the robes from Dai Wang's team came to the door. They held wine jars in their hands, and after entering the door, they placed wine cups around the earthen platform, and each of them raised a glass to drink.
Former comrades-in-arms bid farewell to each other. They told each other interesting stories about the past military life and the feelings between them.
"One day we will be repatriated from the army and return to the countryside. When we pass by Changsong County in Wuwei, we will come to your home to disturb you. You should bring out all the chickens, millet and wine at home, and we will have a drink while we are there.
"
"That's natural."
"You don't have to be too sad. In fact, we all envy you. You can go home to reunite with your brother and sister-in-law, marry a wife and farm mulberry trees, and live in peace for the rest of your life. You don't have to fight in battle and earn money all over your body.
I can’t save much money.”
"That's right!" He wiped his face and said expectantly: "I hope that brothers will be repatriated to the countryside in the future, and that we will be able to drink together as haggard old men."
In fact, this is just a kind of extravagant hope, or a vision. Being shrouded in military horse leather is the ending that most people can see.
Dai Wang sat on the edge of the couch with his legs bent, holding a cup of wine and tasting it slowly. He watched his brothers start to get drunk, with a smile on his lips. The hoarse and sonorous "Da Zhen Music" sounded in this mud house, and these people were out of tune.
The sound of the music also has a somewhat majestic and desolate tone.
Three days later, Dai Wang finally set off alone, leading his skinny yellow horse. His armor and sword were all returned to the Shule army. Now he was alone except for his money. With him on the horse
The money accumulated over the years, daily necessities, and compressed biscuits and bacon in dry food bags.
He lowered his head and walked along the post road in the direction of Diazhuang City. The grasslands on both sides of the road were already as deserted and desolate as he was, a lonely traveler. The cold air of winter was eroding his body. Fortunately, he was able to catch the shot from Congling.
The cotton-padded jackets provided covered most of the cold, and only the Anxi Army had these.
There were six or seven horses running quickly behind him. Dai Wang subconsciously stepped aside so that these people could move quickly. After they ran past, he looked up and saw that they seemed to be members of their Shule Army—
- They all wore yellow and gray crotch-less robes, and the general in the crimson robe at the head should be Li Zhen envoy of Shule Town.
But he didn't expect that the leader, General Li, would actually turn back. He held the horse's reins in both hands, looked at him and asked, "I'm taking off my clothes and armor. It's been a long and dusty journey, but I'm going back home because of illness."
Dai Wang hurriedly crossed his hands and said: "The right brigade and left brigade of the third regiment of the former cavalry battalion are..."
But Li Siye interrupted him and said, "Are you Dai Wang? You were shot in the right hamstring by a stray arrow during the expedition to Tuqishi this year?"
Dai Wang was quite surprised. He didn't expect that Li Siye actually knew his name. He quickly took one hand out of the crutch, crossed his hands and said, "Yes, it's Dai Wang."
Li Siye asked again: "Where is your hometown?"
"General, I live in Changsong County, Wuwei, Hexi Province."
"That's just right," Li Siye looked up at the horizon, then looked down at him and said, "If you don't want to travel alone, you can choose to follow us on the road, but we can take care of you. If you feel constrained by following us, you can also travel alone.
"
"I, I'm just worried that my inconvenient legs and feet will delay the general's schedule."
"How can I delay my trip? I've already set out on the road a few days in advance. Even if I travel all the way, I can still catch up with Fu Meng Zhongcheng's team. Let's go."
Li Siye ordered people to unpack the luggage and dry food from his horse and put them on the others' camels, so that Dai Wang could ride and keep up with them. He, a veteran with a lame right leg, relied on a cane to walk.
You can imagine the hardships involved in walking alone for thousands of miles.
Dai Wang was very grateful, and he thanked everyone with his hands crossed. He grabbed the horse's reins and climbed up, and everyone moved forward along the road set by the merchant traveller.
He first followed the end of the team. The concept of hierarchy made him think that he would not be able to integrate into General Li's soldiers. The loud talk among the people could only make him smile implicitly. On the contrary, General Li was on his journey.
He didn't have the airs of a general, and would turn around from time to time to make jokes and point out mistakes in someone's words, making everyone laugh. The atmosphere in the entire team was actually very relaxed.
Soon Dai Wang was completely integrated into the team. Li Siye slowed down his horse and was slightly ahead of him. He turned around and asked casually, "What are Dai Liulang going to do for a living when he goes back?"
"Let's go home and take a look first. When I came out to serve as a soldier in the 23rd year of the lunar calendar, I only had 20 acres of Yongye field under my name, and the desertification was severe, so I could only grow elm and mulberry trees. It was up to my family to sell the land.
He gave me some transportation and camel horses, so I signed up for the county’s recruitment and came to the Western Regions alone. In the past two years, I have received letters from my family one after another. I learned that there is no land left to share in the county, so I thought about it these years.
I also accumulated some money from my time as a soldier and received reward money from my military exploits. I went back to buy some private fields from big families and bought back some of the fields my brother and sister-in-law had thrown away."
Li Siye raised his head and thought, then turned to ask him: "You have made many meritorious deeds before, but do you have an honorable officer?"
Dai Wang scratched his head and smiled: "To be honest, in the 27th year of the lunar calendar, during the expedition of the sudden cavalry Shi Huang, I followed General Zang Xile's cavalry to charge against the fire-breathing immortal Khan's personal guard army, and collected the
He had three heads, and shot and killed three of Fire-Tumbling Immortal Khan's guards during the pursuit. After being verified by the army, the merit report was that he had won the battle, and he was awarded the second rank of Yunqi Lieutenant. But not long after, in
When I was drinking in a tavern in Duzhou City, I rescued a woman and killed a subordinate of Sima Zhou. Although it was an act of justice, I was still deprived of the medal. It was just that I was young and energetic at the time, but I regret it now."
"That's right," Yan Xiaosi said regretfully from the side: "After Yunqi Lieutenant returns to his hometown after receiving his meritorious service, the Ministry of War will issue a document ordering the prefecture and county to grant you 100 acres of permanent farmland, exempt you from school service, and save a lot of expenses. With the help of the petition,
You can also hold the official position of military arrester in the state or county. If there is someone above you, you can also get a county captain in the lower county."
Someone among the soldiers retorted to Yan Xiaosi: "Captain Yan, what you are talking about is the situation in the early years of the lunar calendar. At that time, whether it was the Ministry of War or the prefectures and counties, ordinary soldiers were still more valued when they were awarded honorary officers. But now it is more popular.
It’s not as good as before, when many third-ranked flying cavalry officers returned to their hometowns and could only get a few acres of thin farmland to cultivate. Many people who donated officers lined up in front, but those of us who had received honors could only eat the loess."
Dai Wang was shocked. A soldier actually dared to vent his dissatisfaction with the court in front of the general. He glanced at Li Siye secretly and found that General Li seemed unaware and didn't take it seriously at all. He sighed in his heart that the atmosphere was strange.
good.
However, Li Siye was thinking that Zhang Xiaojing was also awarded the rank of third-level flying cavalry officer for meritorious service, and was selected to be appointed as the ninth-grade chief of the Ministry of War. He was dismissed from the official position and became a bad commander because he offended his superiors.